Can I afford these repayments?

Find out more about bond repayments

What is a bond calculator?

When purchasing property, it is essential to know how much you will need to pay into your bond every month. A bond calculator helps you figure out your monthly repayments on a property, the total interest you will pay and the total repayment amount.

You will need to input these four factors into the bond calculator to determine your repayment:

1. Purchase price

This is the price of the home that you are interested in buying. The higher the purchase price the higher your monthly repayments will be. It’s important to know that most property sells for less than the asking price so you should try to negotiate the price down as much as you can.

2. Deposit amount

The deposit is the amount of money that you will need to have available to secure your dream property. Although banks do in some instances grant 100% home loans, in most instances you will need at least 10% of the purchase price as a deposit. Putting down a larger deposit will reduce your monthly home loan repayment since it reduces the amount you need to borrow from the bank.

3. Repayment term

The repayment term is how long you choose to repay the bank for the property. Most new bonds are over 20 years but you can choose a shorter or longer term. By choosing to pay off your home loan over a shorter term you will pay less interest and save a significant amount of money. If you select a longer term, your monthly repayments will be lower but you will pay more in interest over the duration of the home loan.

4. Interest rate

This is the rate at which the bank lends you the money to purchase a home. The rate that the bank charges you is based on a variety of factors. You should try to negotiate a lower rate since even a small reduction in the interest rate can add up to a large sum over the course of the home loan.